Welcome to Paisley Petunia…part two!
I find inspiration in pretty pictures, endless possibilities in a bowl of Meyer lemons, the meaning of lifetime devotion in the wagging tails of our 3 rescue dogs, end-of- the-day bliss in a glass of red wine and now, the boundless, soul clutching meaning of life in the faces of my 2 little angels.
It's a happy, creative, joy-full life we've got here in the LA sun. Come play! Bring wine.
CSA
{delivery!}
After many months of talking and thinking and planning for it, we finally signed up for a CSA (community supported agriculture aka a box of fresh local veggies delivered to your house). Waking up to our first delivery was very exciting for the little blue house. We ordered a mix of vegetables and fruit from Farm Fresh to You (thanks to Rachel for the tips and recommendation). The box contained items we had never cooked with or eaten before – purple kale and red chard – and the apples, strawberries and oranges were the best I have tasted in a long time. It makes me sad how genetically modified fruits have sacrificed their favor for size and color.
{lettuces, spinach, swiss chard and kale}
CSAs are great for the following reasons:
- you kind of have to eat your vegetables (and soon before they go bad)
- aaron gets to try cool new recipes and cooking techniques with vegetables that you normally wouldn’t pick out. (I keep begging him to share them here with you)
- it comes to your door, so its easy (or pick up at your local farmers market)
- the food is so fresh! still with dirt on it even.
- the taste. food tastes like it should, since it was grown organically and by people who care about food.
{our second box brought signs of spring – asparagus + artichokes}
If you are interested in finding a CSA near you, visit www.localharvest.org. They even have CSAs that include organic milk and cheese products, honey and meats. I read the other day that there are now more than 6,000 farmers markets nationwide — about a 250% increase since 1994. Yay, America!
I love the flexibility and options with Farm Fresh to You – you can set up delivery for whatever frequency you prefer (we started with every three weeks, but might move up to 2) and put it on hold if you are out of town. And if you don’t like or are tired of a certain vegetable, you just login to the website and let them know to stop including it. I also liked that the organic farm was started by a husband and wife and is now run by their adult children in Capay Valley, California. If you have any questions or are interested in learning about CSAs, drop me a line at s @ paisleypetunia.com.
Yes! CSAs are fabulous – fresh food, supporting local farmers AND inspiration to learn to cook with new foods.